Winners of the EUmies Awards 2026: Less Demolition, More Transformation

The main award in the architecture category was won by the reconstruction of the Charleroi Palais des Expositions exhibition area in Belgium by the studios AgwA and architecten jan de vylder inge vinck. The project impressed the jury with its precise transformation of the extensive object from the 1950s, which works with its potential instead of opting for radical replacement. The architects utilize the existing qualities of the building and, through sensitive interventions, open up new spatial, social, and material possibilities.

The winner in the emerging architects category is the projectTemporary Spaces for Slovenian National Theatre Drama by the studio Vidic Grohar Arhitekti. This project transforms an abandoned industrial area into a vibrant cultural infrastructure. A series of economical and precise interventions redefine the relationship between temporality and permanence and demonstrate how flexible means can expand the cultural life of the city.

Both winning projects emphasize transformation, reuse, and working with limitations. The jury selected from a total of 410 nominations and ultimately recognized an approach that responds to current environmental, social, and economic challenges without unnecessary material or formal excess.

The EUmies Awards, established in 1988, has long mapped and supported quality European architecture. In addition to the main categories of architecture and emerging architecture, it also includes awards for young talents. The winner of the main prize receives a financial reward of 60,000 euros, while the emerging project receives 30,000 euros.

The winners were decided by an international jury composed of prominent figures in contemporary architecture, urbanism, and theory. Its members included the Chilean architect Smiljan Radić, Swedish architect and manager Carl Bäckstrand, Maltese architect Chris Briffa, Latvian architect and expert on the restoration of historical buildings Zaiga Gaile, Slovenian architect and educator Tina Gregorič, German architect, curator, and theorist Nikolaus Hirsch, and Catalan architect Rosa Rull Bertrán. The jury represented a wide spectrum of approaches – from working with historical heritage to sustainable urbanism to experimental and research-oriented architecture.

The awards ceremony will take place in May 2026 at the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion in Barcelona, as part of a two-day program dedicated to contemporary architecture, which will include lectures, discussions, and an exhibition of the finalists.